Math-Sci-Tech Trivia Part II

1. Meniere's Disease, which affects the middle ear, gives rise to a disorder, commonly known as what ?

2. Hero of Alexandria, an ancient mathematician and inventor, gave us Hero's formula for the area of a triangle in terms of its sides. He is also credited with an invention that is now a boon to companies like Pepsi and Coca Cola.

What was the invention ?

3. Long one : In 1952, while reporting a burglary, he let on that he was having a homosexual relationship. The police arrested him and charged him with "Gross Indecency..." Following a trial, which found him guilty, he was publicly humiliated, and forced to undergo hormone therapy, which made him impotent, obese and severely depressed.On June 7, 1954, he went to his room with a jar a cyanide and an apple. He dipped the apple in the cyanide and took several bites. At the age of just forty-two, one of the true geniuses of the century commited suicide, his works, unrecognized by the world.

His last words probably were those of the Wicked Witch from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves : "Dip the apple in the brew, Let the sleeping death seep through."

Who ?

4. In 1604, Johannes Kepler studied this phenomenon which he claimed was associated with the triple conjunction of Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. He calculated the periodicity of this event to be about 800 years.

How do we better know this phenomenon ?

5. A French Professor of Pathology & Anatomy, he invented a machine that he claimed was faster than what was then the standard tool in use. A highwayman, Nicholas Pelletier, was chosen for the first testing. The invention was officially accepted by the authorities in 1792.

Name the professor.

6. When Gladstone (British PM) met this physicist, he asked him whether his works would be of any use. "Yes, sir" remarked the scientist, "One day you will tax it."

2. Hero of Alexandria, an ancient mathematician and inventor, gave us Hero's formula for the area of a triangle in terms of its sides. He is also credited with an invention that is now a boon to companies like Pepsi and Coca Cola.

Actually, a form of the guillotine was invented in England where it had been in use since the 12th or 13th Century. Prof. Guillotin made some modifications, but more importantly, vehemently lobbied for its use, on humanitarian grounds. The other forms of execution prevalent in France before the Revolution included hanging, and a machine that had a big wooden wheel that would break your spine.

3. Alan Turing, you say, eh ? Right-ho, matey ! :tongue:

It was not until 1974 - and the dogged determination Captain F.W Winterbotham - that the world got to hear about the folks at Bletchley Park, that damn near won the bloody war.

1. Vertigo ? The Hitchcock thriller ? Did you know that some critics believe that the entire plot of the movie is a dream by a senseless Scottie who falls from the gutter in the first scene....but I digress...

Yes, vertigo's right, MIH

Humanino, it's going to be impossible to keep the French out of Math & Science trivia. Please don't let that stop you. It most certainly will not be considered 'cheating'.

Now Chroot, your sins are alleviated by their results. You got #6 correct. It was Faraday and he was working on Electricity at the time.

People tend not to know that Faraday was an excellent analytical chemist and that he discovered Benzene.

Actually, a form of the guillotine was invented in England where it had been in use since the 12th or 13th Century. Prof. Guillotin made some modifications, but more importantly, vehemently lobbied for its use, on humanitarian grounds. The other forms of execution prevalent in France before the Revolution included hanging, and a machine that had a big wooden wheel that would break your spine.

:yuck: :surprise:

Gokul43201 said:

Humanino, it's going to be impossible to keep the French out of Math & Science trivia. Please don't let that stop you. It most certainly will not be considered 'cheating'.

Okay, now it's a free for all on 2 and 4. People that have guessed/answered before are back in the game. But take only one shot at each Q.

Some hints :

2. How did u get your last soda ? If that doesn't help, then you're the wrong u, sorry.

4. What special year belongs in the equivalence class of 1604 (modulo roughly 800) ? This is an unfair hint as it will help only the math folk...so I'll help more : In what other years would this phenomenon have occured ? Does any of them jingle a bell ?